Traditionally, businesses have deposited checks received from, for example, customers by physically taking them to a branch of their bank and depositing them over the counter with a teller or dropping them into a night deposit box. The actual physical presentation of checks to be deposited was necessary because, under prior banking laws, the depository bank had to present the original of each check to the corresponding paying bank in order to clear the check. This changed in October of 2004 with the enactment of The Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act, commonly referred to Check 21. Check 21 removed the legal requirement that an original paper check had to be presented to obtain payment. Instead, banks can now use digital images to transport check data from the bank of first deposit to the paying bank. If the paying bank cannot process a check image, the image can be printed, according to certain specifications, to create what is known as a substitute check, which is the legal equivalent of the original paper check. Check 21 has thus opened the door for remote check deposit solutions wherein check images, rather than original paper checks, are used to make deposits, thereby enabling businesses to eliminate trips to the bank. In addition, the use of check images also reduces check transportation costs among banks and improves funds availability.
Currently, in order to implement most remote check deposit solutions, a depositor must have a personal computer (PC) loaded with special application software, a scanner, and a secure internet connection. When the depositor wishes to make a deposit, an operator, such an accounts receivable clerk, scans each of the checks to be deposited. As the checks are scanned, an image of each of the checks is generated and displayed on the PC and the operator keys in the dollar amount of each check. Alternatively, the PC may be provided with optical character recognition (OCR) software that is adapted to obtain the dollar amount of each check directly from the scanned image. In this case, the operator views the check images in the display and verifies or corrects the amounts that are recognized by the OCR software. In either case, once the images are created and the dollar amount of each check is obtained, that information is transmitted through the Internet to the depository bank and is used to make the appropriate deposits to the depositor's account. While such systems add convenience for depositors and reduce the amount of, and thus the cost of, bank operator intervention, they require PCs and software at the depositor site that are relatively expensive and that introduce problems associated with software, maintenance and holes. Alternatively, at least one dedicated check scanning device that includes an integrated scanner, keyboard and limited LCD is commercially available in the form of the Synergy™ scanner sold by RDM Corporation of Waterloo Canada. This device, however, requires that checks be scanned and information related thereto be entered one at a time, which may prove inefficient and inconvenient for many operators. Another alternative is to merely transmit check images to the depository bank and have bank personnel verify and/or correct check amounts manually or in cooperation with OCR software. As will be appreciated, such a solution, while effective, increases the frequency at which bank personnel must be involved in the check deposit process, which adds expense and consumes bank resources.
Thus, there is a need for a remote check capture system and method that both reduces costs associated with and increases efficiency and convenience at the depositor's site and at the same time does not significantly increase the involvement required by bank personnel.